Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Global is the new local.It's the global economy, the global environment and, of course, the global battle against poverty.But, what if you live in the Midwest?Are you really connected to the global - anything?Sure, you'd like to be a good citizen, but...

Well, relax.A bright, young - and, now, extremely rich - college student has devised a means by which you can help wipe out malaria.Right from the comfort of your kitchen, den, or even your from your mobile phone.

Here's how it works.

Tom Hadfield, a British entrepreneur who made millions when he sold Soccer.net to ESPN, has now turned his sights to health care.After returning from a trip to Zambia, he reflected on the devastating impact malaria has on those without the proper prevention tools or treatments.So, using his entrepreneurial flair, he established MalariaEngage.org.

According to their website, MalariaEngage is a collaboration between the McLaughlin-Rotman Centre for Global Health, Impactanation and the National Institute for Medical Research in Tanzania.Impactanation says it is "committed to finding innovative strategies to engage the world's largest untapped resource, youth, in solutions to the key challenges we are facing on the planet today. We believe in the potential of individuals to see the world in a new way and to use that view to solve the challenges in front of them.As we imagine a better world we develop our imagination. As we see the experience of our impact, we Impact a Nation."

The basic idea of MalariaEngage is to encourage people to donate a minimal amount, $10, toward research that will help speed ideas from the laboratories of Africa to the peoples in need.Further, Hadfield hopes to connect thousands of people in social networks, based on their common desire to eliminate malaria, believing this will add crucial momentum to the research and interventions.

$10?Yeah, that's all it takes to be part of a worldwide effort to get rid of malaria.Pretty cool...

To read more about Hadfield, see this from Reuters.To participate in the effort, see this from MalariaEngage.